The invention relates to a speech recognition method in accordance with the introductory part of claim 1, to a speech recognition device in accordance with the introductory part of claim 4 and to a computer program product in accordance with the introductory part of claim 7.
Such a speech recognition method for activating a hyperlink of text information of an Internet site shown to a user, such a speech recognition device and such a computer program product are known from the document EP 0 847 179 A2. The known speech recognition device is formed by a computer which executes the known speech recognition method when the computer program product runs on the computer. The computer is connected to the Internet and the known speech recognition device is arranged for receiving text information of an Internet page from a computer server connected to the Internet.
The received text information of an Internet site is HTML coded and usually also contains so-called hyperlinks in addition to text. A hyperlink comprises a hypertext that can be displayed with a monitor of the computer and an assigned Internet address. The hypertext is normally displayed underlined or reproduced acoustically with a different emphasis to distinguish it from other texts of the text information of the Internet page. When such a hyperlink is activatedxe2x80x94for example, by clicking a cursor controlled by a mousexe2x80x94the text information of the Internet page featured by the Internet address of the activated hyperlink is extracted by a computer server connected to the Internet and displayed by the monitor.
The known speech recognition device includes hyperlink identification means with which the hypertexts of the hyperlinks in the text information of a received Internet page are determined. For the hypertexts determined by the hyperlink identification means correlation means of the speech recognition device determine first phoneme sequences corresponding to these hypertexts and store them. When the first phoneme sequences are determined, the correlation means compare text portions of the hypertexts with a large number of words stored in a word memory. If a large correspondence is established of a text portion of one of the hypertexts with a word of the word memory, a phoneme sequence stored in the word memory and assigned to this text portion is included in the first phoneme sequence of this hypertext.
If a user wishes to activate a hyperlink displayed by the monitor and contained in the text information, so as to obtain the text information of the corresponding Internet page displayed by the monitor, he pronounces the word or the words of the hypertext of this hyperlink as a spoken command into a microphone connected to the computer.
The known speech recognition device includes receiving means for receiving an audio signal corresponding to the spoken command. The known speech recognition device further includes speech recognition means for determining a second phoneme sequence corresponding to the received audio signal of the spoken command. By comparing the determined second phoneme sequence of the spoken command with stored first phoneme sequences of hyperlinks that can be activated, the speech recognition means further determine the first phoneme sequence corresponding to the second phoneme sequence and the Internet address assigned to the hypertext of this first phoneme sequence. The computer then extracts the text information of the Internet page of the computer server featured by the Internet address and the monitor of the computer displays or acoustically reproduces this text information.
With the known speech recognition method, with the known speech recognition device and with the known computer program product it has proved to be disadvantageous that the quality of the first phoneme sequences determined by the correlation means for the hypertexts are often very poor. This may happen, for example, when in the word memory of the correlation means only words in English are stored and the hypertext is formed by French or Spanish words. If, however, the quality of the determined first phoneme sequences of all or several hypertexts of an Internet page is poor, it is impossible with the speech recognition means to activate the hyperlink corresponding to the spoken command, which is a major drawback.
It is an object of the invention to eliminate the problems described above and provide an improved speech recognition method, an improved speech recognition device and an improved computer program product. This object is achieved with such a speech recognition method by the measures forming the characterizing part of claim 1, with such a speech recognition device by the measures forming the characterizing part of claim 4 and with such a computer program product by the measures forming the characterizing part of claim 7.
As a result, when the first phoneme sequences corresponding to the hypertexts of the hyperlinks are determined, a quality value is determined for each first phoneme sequence and compared to a quality threshold. When such a comparison shows that a determined first phoneme sequence has a poor quality, an extra hypertext is determined for this hyperlink by the correlation means and additionally inserted into the text information of the Internet page and displayed on the monitor before or after the hypertext or in lieu of the hypertext. The correlation means define the additional hypertext so that a first phoneme sequence determined for the extra hypertext by the correlation means has a high quality value and that between the hypertext and the extra hypertext there is an abstract link, as appropriate.
This offers the advantage that a user by speaking the words of the hypertext of a hyperlink or by speaking the words of an extra hypertext of the hyperlink shown in addition to or in lieu of the hypertext can have an effect on the hyperlink by activating and receiving and displaying the text information of the Internet page featured by the hyperlink. It is then particularly advantageous that all the hyperlinks of an Internet page can constantly, very reliably be activated by spoken commands.
With the speech recognition method as claimed in claim 1 and with a speech recognition device as claimed in claim 4 it has proved to be advantageous to display a number as extra hypertext, because a number needs little space for being displayed in the text information of an Internet page.
It is particularly advantageous, when the numerical value is determined, to take this number into consideration prior to hypertexts or extra hypertexts contained and reproduced in the text information of the Internet page. If, for example, the numerical value xe2x80x9c10xe2x80x9d is determined and displayed as extra hypertext for the tenth hyperlink contained in the text information, the user also receives the information that nine other hyperlinks in the Internet page can be activated prior to this, even if the first part of the text information is not displayed on the monitor.
With a computer program product as claimed in claim 7 it has proved to be advantageous to store this product on a medium that can be read by a computer to simplify transport and installation of the computer program product.
The invention will be described in the following with reference to two examples of embodiment shown in the Figures, to which examples of embodiment, however, the invention is not restricted.